Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want
more love in the world, create more love in your heart and give more love. If
you want more competence in your team, improve your own competence first. If
you want respect, first learn to respect others. This equation applies to
everything, in all aspects of life. The Almighty says in the Holy Quran:

هَلْ جَزَآءُ ٱلإِحْسَانِ
إِلاَّ ٱلإِحْسَانُ

“Is there any reward
for good,

other than good?”

(al-Quran 55:60)

Life will give you back everything you give to it. Make sure
you give it your best so that you may receive the best. It all comes back to
you, sooner or later. Have no doubt about it in your mind!

The Bible says:

Matthew 25:46

“These people will go
away into eternal punishment,

but the
righteous will go into eternal life.”

Concentrate your efforts on good deeds, sharing love and
compassion, helping others, etc. This would not only please other human beings
but would also be more pleasing to Allah. Then you’ll enjoy the benefits or
rewards of your good actions.

وَأَن لَّيْسَ
لِلإِنسَانِ إِلاَّ مَا سَعَىٰ

“That man can have
nothing

but what he strives
for.”

(al-Quran 53:39)

وَٱلَّذِينَ
جَاهَدُواْ فِينَا لَنَهْدِيَنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا

وَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ
لَمَعَ ٱلْمُحْسِنِينَ

“And those who strive
in Our (cause), We

will certainly guide
them to our paths; for

verily, Allah is with
those who do right.”

(al-Quran 29:69)

Your life is not a coincidence. It’s a reflection of you.
So, be a good role-model; be a light to others; be a God-fearing Muslim so that
others can learn from you.

The Bible says:

1-Timothy 4:8

“For physical
training is of some value, but

godliness has value
for all things, holding promise

for both the present
life and the life to come.”

Our life in this world is temporary. The world looks very
beautiful and full of temptation. But Allah tells the believers that this is
just a comfort of illusion. The real life is in the Hereafter. That life is for
ever and that is the one we should be chasing and striving for. All the wise
people, and those who are closer to God, they reject this world’s temptations.
They ignore its charms because they know that it is not lasting, and it’s also a
trap.

Actually, this is the real test for a man – a believer. If
you fall in love with the world, you move away from God. And if you fall in
love with God, you stay away from worldly pleasures. But at the same time Allah
takes care of your worldly needs and bestows His bounties on you.

Prophet Jesus Christ (Isa ibn Mariam, a.s.)
said that the love for the Hereafter and the love of this world cannot live together
in the same heart. They are like fire and water. If you chase your worldly
desires, you will become a slave to the world.

Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) said that a person
whose sole purpose of life is running after the world (material gains), he has
nothing to do with Allah. Allah gives the seeker of the world, four things and
he is always occupied with them till death comes to him. These four things are:

1. The worry that never ends – he is always
worried about his wealth, seeking ways
and means to accumulate it; and multiply it.

2. An occupation from which he will never get free.
In other words, he is so busy in amassing wealth that he has no time for any
good deed of charity, helping others, or even thanking God for all the bounties
he is enjoying.

3. A
poverty that will never make him content/satisfied (the more he has,
the more he wants; money is never enough. He remains poor at heart and does not
want to share his wealth even with the needy because he thinks that by giving
away money, he would become poor).

4. Long list of desires and high hopes that can never
be fulfilled. (Again this refers to his struggle for the worldly,
material gains and never-ending ambitions.)

It is narrated that once Prophet Mohammad (s.a.w.), was
talking to his companions and said:

“On the Day of Judgment, some people will bring large amount
of good deeds like the mountains of Arabia but
they will be thrown into Hell.”

Somebody asked whether these people used to pray (Salaat).
The Prophet (s.a.w.), replied: “Yes, they used to pray; used to fast, even wake
up at night for Tahajjud prayer. But they would be those who jumped at the
temptation of the world (wealth, fame, status, show-off, honor, material
things, etc.) and never even cared what was Halal and Haram.”

That is what the charm of the world, the temptation, the
greed, the wealth and the lust can do to you. That is the recipe for Hellfire.

Give the world your good deeds, your compassion, your piety
(Taqwah) and try not to take anything (more than your basic needs) from it!
Stay away from greed – greed for anything! Always remember death and the grave;
and fear Allah! Spend the day, as if it was your last day, glorifying God and pleasing
Him with your kind actions. One day you’ll be standing in front of Him,
answering questions.

The life of this world is nothing but a puppet show. We
should enjoy its temporary glitter and pomp but must not lose sight of our real
goal – the Hereafter. We, as believers
of the Hereafter; should think differently from the non-believers. The non-believer do not, and cannot, see
beyond this world and its pleasures. Allah has a stern warning for them:

مَتَاعٌ فِى
ٱلدُّنْيَا ثُمَّ إِلَيْنَا مَرْجِعُهُمْ ثُمَّ نُذِيقُهُمُ

ٱلْعَذَابَ
ٱلشَّدِيدَ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكْفُرُونَ

“The world’s portion
will be theirs,

then unto Us is their
return. Then We

make them taste a
dreadful doom

because they used to
disbelieve.”

(al-Quran 10:70)

We have to make the choice here – this world or the
Hereafter. If we strive for the Hereafter, we’ll be rewarded by the
Almighty. Treat your fellow humans with
compassion and mercy so that, in return, Allah will have His mercy and
compassion on you! Thus you’ll get the best of the both worlds.

But there is no gain without pain. We’ll have to go through the trials, hardships
and all kinds of adversaries. There is definitely no escape from it. That’s the
promised test for the true believers. The Almighty says:

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QURAN RECITATION

Al-Quran

The Guiding Light

WELCOME HOME

Assalaam-o-alaikum!

We are glad to see you here. We can accompany you home. By joining us, you'll, Insha-Allah, prepare yourself mentally and spiritually for your onward journey on the road less traveled. We are heading for Home - the promised Home. Allah says:

M. Javed Naseem

M. Javed Naseem (Jay Max) is a well-known journalist and broadcaster from Lahore (Pakistan). He is the author of six books. He has worked as a reporter and then sub-editor for daily Nawa-i-Waqt, Lahore; as sub-editor with the Pakistan Times, Lahore; and as editor of the weekly Community News, New York, NY, among others.He was an international broadcaster for radio Deutsche Welle (The Voice of Germany), Cologne, Germany; news editor and newscaster for Third World Broadcasting TV in New York; was producer & director of ‘Mabuhay’, an English language TV show for the Filipino community in New York. He had been an announcer at Radio Pakistan, Lahore; and Punjabi newscaster for Pakistan Television, Lahore. Before entering the field of professional journalism, he was a Lecturer/Instructor at the Govt. Commercial Training Institute, Lahore. He knows English, French, German, Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi, Persian and some Arabic. He writes for Islamic websites. He is a Pakistani-American and now lives in retirement in Morocco, North Africa.Publications: The Way (Sunnah) of The Prophet (s.a.w.); God's Prescription - Al-Quran; A Wake-up Call; You Are Special; Stories of Prophets.